


Birds and Bees

by kukkauka



Series: Birds and Bees [1]
Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: (former) Boston Bruins, (former) Washington Capitals, Age Regression/De-Aging, Anaheim Ducks, Drabble, M/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-13
Updated: 2021-03-04
Packaged: 2021-03-12 23:42:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 7,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23167792
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kukkauka/pseuds/kukkauka
Summary: Birds and Bees - Sunrise Avenueand Finns and Carey Price.16: the little ones(Danton+Backes+Christian)17: if you love them(Patrice+Tuukka (+Jaro+Brad))18: They're mine!Jaro/Tuukka/Dobby+Patrice
Relationships: Nicklas Backstrom/Alexander Ovechkin
Series: Birds and Bees [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1877146
Comments: 4
Kudos: 34





	1. CONTENTS & Hockey Playlist

**CONTENTS**

1: **CONTENTS & Hockey Playlist**  
2: Christian: Three-year-old  
3: We love Pasta!  
4: Far from Home (Danton/Christian)  
5: Juicy Juice  
(Three-year-olds: Juuse, Christian)  
6: '87 6'3"/'85 5'11"/'87 6'3"  
(Carey Price/Jaro Halak/Tuukka Rask)  
7: Charlie  
(Chris: Three-year-old Charlie/Chris+Charlie)  
8: Age (not-fic Charlie/Matt)  
9: we don't need a dog  
(Andre/Christian+puppy+Nicke)  
10: You're so pretty  
(not-fic Patrice/Brad←Tyler)  


11: Andre  
(Andre: Three-year-old Andre/Christian)  
12: Homesick  
(Three-year-olds: Christian, Danton)  
13: Superstar - Tokyo Incidents  
(not-fic, lyrics translation Nicke/Christian)  
14: Let's get lost together  
(Jaro/Johnny)  
15: Nicke (Andre/Christian)  
16: the little ones (Danton+Backes+Christian)  
17: if you love them  
(Patrice+Tuukka (+Jaro+Brad))  
18: They're mine!  
Jaro/Tuukka/Dobby+Patrice

**Hockey Playlist**

Misha/Max  
(Scoring Chances)  
Stay - Tyler Ward ft. Cody Johns

McStrome  
River - Chris Noah  
(It's About Us - Jeff LeBlanc)  
The Line - Chris Noah  
Last Time - Anson Seabra  
Winterbreak - MUNA

Kaner/Tazer  
It's About Us - Jeff LeBlanc  
Chicago - McKenna Breinholt

Alex/Dylan  
(Chicago - McKenna Breinholt)

Bergy/Marchy  
Saint - VÉRITÉ

Carey/Jaro  
(when they were younger)  
The Way It Goes - Stephen Carey

Nicke/Christian  
Superstar - Tokyo Incidents

*Sid*  
The Way I Am - Charlie Puth


	2. Christian: Three-year-old

Three-year-old Christian never comes anywhere near Nicke.  
He watches Nicke when he thinks he doesn't notice, but every time Nicke looks at him, he looks away.  
Christian is a very calm and shy baby, and he spends most of the time in Andre's arms.

"I don't get it. He must love me."  
Nicke frowns, folding his arms across his chest.  
Alex watches Nicke for a moment, then leaves the locker room and returns with some hockey cards.  
"Nicke, sign these!"  
"What? Why...?"  
Nicke frowns even more, but does what he's told.  
"Come here Christian, Nicke brought you something."  
Alex crouches down and calls him gently, using these cards as baits. Christian looks skeptical but slowly climbs down from Andre's arms and toddles towards Alex. Nicke quietly crouches down as well beside him, and as soon as he's within arm's reach, Nicke swoops him up in his arms.  
"I got you!"  
Christian looks so upset in his arms and he's clearly searching for Andre. But Nicke hugs him tightly and nuzzles his soft hair.  
"You love me more than Andre, right?"  
Nicke coos but Christian is two seconds away from crying.  
"Give him back to me! You're scaring him!"  
Andre makes grabby hands towards him. Nicke doesn't want to give him back, but he also doesn't want to make the baby cry, so he lets him go.  
Nicke watches Andre cooing at him softly.

"Christian loves you so much," Alex tells to Nicke.  
"He's just... You're his hero. He's just too scared to talk to you."  
"Is he...?" Nicke sounds unconvinced.  
Christian is sucking his thumb and snuggling into Andre's neck. Nicke waves at him, then Christian waves his tiny hand slightly.  
"He waved back!" Nicke says in a hushed voice, sounding excited.  
"I told you he loves you. Who doesn't?"  
Alex ruffles Nicke's hair, can't help but smile.


	3. We love Pasta!

Sometimes Tuukka squishes Charlie's cheeks between his hands. Goalies are weird. But Jaro doesn't do such a thing, so maybe it's just a Tuukka thing.

Tuukka's squishing Charlie's cheeks as always when someone tugs his sleeve. It's just Pasta.  
"Tuuks, why him? Why not me? My face is cute too!"  
Tuukka stares down at Pasta's face, still squishing Charlie's cheeks. He removes his hands from Charlie's face, then pinches Pasta's cheek instead.  
"Your face is... funny." Tuukka says and smirks.  
"What do you mean _funny?!_" Pasta protests.

At the moment, they heard someone giggling somewhere in the locker room. Two blonde girls are giggling behind Jasmiina.  
"Why are your girls looking at me?" Pasta asks Tuukka.  
"Your girls are looking at me."  
He makes a funny face at them, so they smile even more.  
Tuukka releases him, huffs out a laugh and walks towards the shower.  
"Kiitti."

"What? What did you say?"  
"Nothing."  
"Tuuuks?" Pasta follows after Tuukka.  
Charlie doesn't understand what Tuukka said either, but he didn't miss the way the corner of his mouth turned up in a smile like his daughters.  
Charlie gets a little jealous of Pasta, so he just goes to search for Zee to hug him.


	4. Far from Home

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danton/Christian

"Hi, I'm Danton."  
"Hi. I'm Christian."  
They met in February.

"I thought we'd get along," Danton said few weeks later.

At first Danton felt sad in Anaheim, but at least he had Backes.  
Backes was _his_ Dadkes, had never been Christian's but Backes kind of adopted Christian as well as Danton.  
"I found a new restaurant."  
Backes invites Danton to lunch, and Danton drags Christian out with him. The two of them have become a package deal.

Backes invites them home for dinner too.  
"Did you take some stray puppies home again?"  
Backes' wife, Kelly makes a joke to her husband and Backes smiles.  
"Nah, I'm a Duck now, so they just followed after me."

The kids and dogs, and video games were so much fun that they lost track of the time. And they end up sharing a bed, because there's only one guest room.  
"I don't mind sleeping on the couch," Danton said, since Christian is slightly older than him.  
Christian said the same thing, because he didn't want to intrude on their reunion and _he's_ the third wheel here in the first place.  
"No one has to sleep on the couch," Backes tells them softly and tucks them both in to the bed.  
They're tired but can't sleep for some reason, so they just talk about each other's former teammates.  
"You're kind of like Jaro," Danton says.  
"...Jaro Halak?"  
"Yeah, you both are Europeans, have a nice smile but can be wild sometimes."  
Christian doesn't know much about the goalie but Halak was once a Caps too, so he feels some kind of connection to him.  
Danton tells him about the time when Jaro turned around then smashed his stick after he allowed John Marino's first NHL goal.  
"I'm not that wild," Christian laughs.  
"But I saw you threw a Hawk onto the ice."  
"That was one time!" Christian jabs him in the ribs, and they end up wrestling on the bed until they get tired. Then they both go quiet.  
"...Do you miss them?" Danton asks.  
Christian slightly opens his mouth but closes it, shoves his face into the pillow like he doesn't want to answer out loud.

Sharing a bed happens few times.  
This time Christian is really sleepy, he dozes off on the bed while Danton is still brushing his teeth.  
"Christian, I want the right side," Danton insists beside the bed. Christian doesn't care what side of the bed he climbs in on, but he doesn't want to move anymore, so he just ignores him.  
"Djooo..." Danton whines.  
"...If you call me like Andre I'm gonna kick you out of my bed, I swear."  
Danton smiles, then climbs in beside him.

When they're in Washington, Christian tugs Danton's sleeve and goes to search for his former teammates.  
"Did you make any new friends?" Alex asks him, smiling fondly.  
"This is Danny. He's my friend." Christian introduces Danton to them.  
Nicke stares at Danton with his murder eyes, from head to toes, then opens his mouth.  
"If you hurt him, I'll kill you." He said that really smoothly, like he had said that a thousand times.  
"Oh my god, I'm gonna tell Andre you got a new best friend in Anaheim, he's gonna be jealous. You've replaced us already!"  
Jakub pipes up from behind Alex.  
"Danny isn't a replacement or anything," Christian says, sounding a little bit angry.  
"I'm sorry, don't be mad," Jakub apologizes and touches Christian's cheek slightly.

"Danton, Christian, you're gonna be late!"  
Backes calls them out from the other side of the corridor. Danton says good bye to the Caps then goes back to Backes.  
Nicke stares at Danton's back for a moment, then asks Christian.  
"What's he like? What do you like about him?"  
"...He's nice," Christian says, slightly blushing.  
"Then you should be nice to him, too."  
"I know, Nicke."  
Christian hugs them each and follows after Danton. Backes smiles at the Caps from a distance, and the three of them disappear around the corner.

"Don't worry, Nicke. Danny is good for Christian," Alex says to Nicke.  
"Yeah, I think so... but, what about David Backes? He's not a Swede."  
"Yeah...? I think he's from Minnesota."  
"He doesn't know what we're like, can't understand Christian as well as I do."  
"Oh my god, Nicke... he'd never replace you. And Backes doesn't mean to take him away from you, he just tries to look after the young guys because we can't be with him anymore. You know that."  
"Yeah, I know. And it still sucks."

"You're different," Christian says abruptly on the bus ride back to the hotel.  
"How so?" Danton asks quietly.  
"'Cause... they're more loud. Andre, Jakub, and Madison... You're ...more calm."  
"The Bruins are loud too, though. You'd be surprised."  
Danton smiles and doesn't say anything when Christian falls asleep on his shoulder.

When they were in Boston, Christian wasn't threaten by the Bruins, but he had to answer tons of questions.  
Like, "Where are you from?" "What video games do you play?" "What's your favorite pregame meal?" "What do you think about Danny?"

"What was he like?"  
When Brad asks Torey later, he just says, "Don't worry about him, he was way more mature than us. Definitely more than you."

Danton looked so happy to see them again. It hurts Christian a little to see him that happy, but it's fine if he's happy.

Danton and Christian invite Backes to lunch, and sometimes he declines their invitation.  
Because, "You two should hang out more with people your own age," and "should follow after other vets on the team other than me."  
He always tries to make sure they get to know their teammates.  
So they follow after their captain, hang out with the guys, try to look after the younger guys and still sleep over at Backes'.

They still feel sad about the trades sometimes. But that doesn't mean they'll never see their former teammates again. Now they have their own teammates who welcomed them, and more importantly they have each other.  
They'll be fine. Everything is fine.


	5. Juicy Juice

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three-year-olds: Juuse, Christian

"Christian, where are you?"  
After searching for twenty minutes, Alex finally found him.  
"You can't just wander around the arena by yourself. You'll get lost."  
"But I heard someone call me..."  
Christian says and when Alex looks down at him, he notices for the first time that Christian isn't alone. There's another little boy around the same age.  
"Who did you kidnap?" Alex widens his eyes. The little boy beams up at him.  
"Hi, Ovi! I'm _Juuse!_"  
It sounded to him like _'I'm juice!'_ but the boy wears the tiny jersey with Rinne's name on it, so it all makes sense.  
"Oh, so you're Saros, right? Rinne's boy."  
Juuse beams even more brightly.

Alex smiles mischievously and crouches down in front of them.  
"Repeat after me, okay?" He says softly, then points at Juuse's tiny chest and speaks slowly.  
_"Juuse."_  
"Juice!!" The boys parrot obediently, and Alex smiles weakly at them. He points at Christian next, he pronounces carefully.  
_"Djoos."_  
"Juice? I want juice," Christian tilts his head like a confused puppy.  
"Christian..."  
"Yeah?" It's impossible not to smile when he looks so innocent.  
"Okay, my bad. It was confusing. Let's go get some juice then!"  
Alex heads to the players' lounge, carrying a boy in each arm.

When Alex gives them each an apple juice box and the boys are struggling with their plastic straws, they hear an upset voice.  
"Juuse! Missä oot?!"  
"Mä oon täällä! I'm here!"  
Juuse answers cheerfully, and Christian raises his tiny hand like he thinks _he's_ the one who is being called.  
"Don't wander around by yourse..."  
Rinne scolds Juuse in both languages for a moment, then spots Christian for the first time.  
"Sorry, Rinne. Christian kidnapped your baby. Don't scold Juuse," Alex says, and smiles at Rinne.  
"Oh, hi. It's okay."  
Rinne crouches down in front of Christian, and offers his hand to shake.  
"Hi, I'm Pekka Rinne. What's your name?"  
"...Christian _Djoos._"  
It definitely sounded to him like _'Christian juice'_ but he doesn't point out that, just smiles kindly and holds his tiny hand.  
"Christian," Alex tries, but Christian clings tightly to his legs, and tries to hide behind him.

"Bye, juice!" The boys says to each other before Rinne heads to the visitor's locker room, carrying Juuse in his arms.

"What took so long? Did you find him?"  
Nicke finally found them in the players' lounge.  
"He made new friends," Alex says to him proudly.  
"Is that true?" Nicke coos at Christian and pats his hair.

They head to their locker room.  
"Hey, Christian? Why did you explore by yourself? I told you not to."  
Alex isn't mad, he just worries about this kid.  
"...Nicke said I should make more friends."  
"Aww, so you don't listen to me, but you do listen to Nicke!"  
Alex teases Christian who clutches his juice box and buries his face against Alex's neck.  
"Don't tease him, Sasha."  
Nicke pats his gray hair lightly and smiles a little.


	6. '87 6'3"/'85 5'11"/'87 6'3"

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Carey Price/Jaro Halak/Tuukka Rask

When Tuukka opens his hotel room door, Jaro is standing there, holding his pillow.  
"...What are you doing here?" Tuukka asks.  
"You said 'Don't steal my pillow', so I brought mine," Jaro smiles.  
"I didn't mean you could sleep here," Tuukka protests but Jaro just brushes him off.  
"Why did you come here?" Tuukka trails after Jaro into his room.

By the time Tuukka finishes brushing his teeth and then goes to his bed, Jaro's already made himself comfortable and fallen asleep in his bed. But as soon as Tuukka climbs into bed beside him, Jaro abandons his own pillow and uses Tuukka's chest as his pillow.  
I'm not your pillow, Tuukka wants to say, but Jaro's face is so peaceful that he remains silent.

When Tuukka wakes up, Patrice is smiling down at him.  
"Morning Tuuks, I was looking for Jaro. He answered the door," Patrice says.  
Tuukka vaguely remembers Jaro climbing out of bed at some point, but he's not sure. Jaro is still asleep in his arms.  
"We all know you love him so much, but Tuuks... I don't think he can breathe like that," Patrice laughs softly.  
They sleep in a tangle of limbs like napping cats. Tuukka holds him tightly like a body pillow, as if Patrice might take Jaro away from him.

Tuukka heads downstairs with Jaro to the breakfast lounge, and there's of course, Carey Price sitting on one of the lounge couches. He never misses the chance to get to see his former partner.  
"Jaro!!"  
As soon as he spots them, he strides to them and hugs Jaro tightly, almost crushing him in his arms.  
"Missed you..." Carey buries his nose in Jaro's neck.  
"Good to see you again," Jaro pats his shoulder.

"Hi, Tuukka," Carey smiles at him next.  
"Don't do that to him, Carey," Jaro warns him but he just ignores him.  
"You know, Jaro and I... we have a history and so much to catch up on. So I'd appreciate it if you could give us some privacy."  
Carey smirks at him, and Tuukka glares back at him.  
_"Don't. Touch. Mine,"_ Tuukka snarls.  
Carey nuzzles happily into Jaro's neck.

"Tuukka," Jaro tries to grab his arm, and his fingertips brush his forearm lightly. But Tuukka avoids his touch, turns on his heels and walks away toward the corner seats.  
In the opposite corner of the lounge, Jaro takes a seat across from Carey, a cup of coffee in each of their hands.  
"Be nice to him, Carey," Jaro scolds.  
"I'm always _nice_ to him," Carey talks back.  
"It's not fair he gets to see you all the time, though."  
"Don't pout."  
"I'm not pouting."

They talk for a while about mutual friends, about Montreal, about Boston.  
Then, Carey's face and voice suddenly turn serious.  
"You're happy with him, right? I trust him, even though we all are rivals of each other. He treats you right, doesn't he?"  
He looks anxious for the first time since they reunited.  
"We're not dating anymore but I always care about you, you know that right?"  
Carey would never forget how much he wanted this Slovak when he was a twenty year old kid. Always wanted those bright gray eyes on him, wanted to kiss the upturned corners of his mouth. He liked to watch the way Jaro tilted his head when he smiled.  
He still loves those little things about him, still wants him. It's just in a different kind of way.

"I love him, and I know how much you care about me," Jaro says.  
"Good. That's all I need," Carey smiles really brightly at him.  
Jaro understands the feeling all too well. Even if you don't see them every day, you can't help but pray every day. 'Stay safe, don't get hurt.' Especially now because you can't be with them anymore when something happens to them. When someone gets hurt, or traded, or sent down.

"I think you should go back to him now, I have to go get ready for practice anyway," Carey touches Jaro's fingers lightly, then stands up.  
Jaro hugs him so tightly then lets him go. 

"Tuukka," his body stiffens a little when Jaro touches his shoulder.  
"Sorry for making you wait."  
He takes a seat across from Tuukka, and steals a grape from his bowl.  
"Don't steal my food," Tuukka says, but pushes his bowl toward Jaro across the table.  
"Don't sulk," Jaro says.  
"I'm not sulking."  
They keep sharing their food and eating in silence for a few minutes until Tuukka speaks up again.  
"Is he okay?" he asks quietly.  
"Yeah, he's fine."  
"Good."  
Jaro smiles when he sees Tuukka smiling a little, then asks nervously.  
"I just... we're dating, right?"  
"I think so."  
"I love you, I really do. I just want him to be safe and happy, always. I think I'll never stop loving him, caring him. In a different kind of way, but still. I just can't stop. I'm sorry."  
"I know, you don't have to apologize," Tuukka tells him calmly.  
"We're dating but you... you always care about Khudobin, or about Tim Thomas, right?"  
"Yes."  
"I..."  
"Jaro," Tuukka cuts him off.  
"I told you before, it's not about choosing sides. You love him, I love them. And we're okay with that. I'm sorry for acting like that earlier."  
Tuukka covers Jaro's left hand with his right, his brownish-green eyes are so soft. Jaro smiles, tilting his head a little to the side.  
"And don't mind him, Carey is just being Carey," Jaro says. Tuukka laughs brightly.


	7. Charlie

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chris: Three-year-old Charlie/Chris+Charlie

In the corridor of their practice facility, Charlie finds Chris holding his picture book.  
"Chris! What are you doing here all by yourself? Zee was so worried about you, he thought you got lost," Charlie says.  
"I was looking for Charlie..." Chris says to his feet.  
Charlie crouches down in front of him, and says softly.  
"Yeah? I'm here."  
But Chris makes a frustrated face.  
"Nooo... You're not _my_ Charlieee!"  
"Oh," so he wants _Coyle._  
"Okay, don't worry! I know where he is," Charlie assures him cheerfully.  
Chris holds Charlie's hand before Charlie offers his hand to hold, as if he completely trusts Charlie without hesitation. It's so cute when kids do that. Chris' hand is so hot and tiny in his own hand.

"Do you want me to hold your book?"  
Charlie asks, cause Chris' picture book is too big for him. But Chris shakes his head.  
"No! This is _my_ book, _I_ hold this. Charlie gave this to me..."  
He clutches his book protectively. Chris is always stubborn in a cute way.  
"You really love him, huh?"  
Charlie smiles down at him fondly, and leads him to their locker room by his hand.  
"Where are you, Charlie?" Charlie calls, in a loud voice.  
Chris looks up at him, blinks, then smiles widely. He mimics him.  
"Where are you, Charlie!"  
He's just so happy to see Chris smiling.

But Charlie can't manage to keep him in a happy mood. When he enters their locker room, holding Chris in his arms, Chris has already got cranky. He makes grabby hands toward Coyle who's sitting in his stall, so Charlie carefully puts him on his lap.  
"Oh, hey there buddy! Where have you been?"  
Coyle hugs Chris close to his chest.  
"He's been wandering around looking for you. According to him, I'm not _his_ Charlie," Charlie laughs weakly.  
"Thanks, Cheeks... I told him to wait with the trainers, but things ran long so... Chris, say 'thank you' to him," he speaks softly to Chris, but Chris just keeps burying his face against Coyle's shirt.  
"Chris, it's not nice of you," he says firmly this time.  
"It's okay, he just misses you so much," Charlie says hurriedly.  
"And he needs a nap, I think..." Coyle smiles a little.  
But then Chris squirms on his lap, and starts sobbing miserably.  
"...You forgot me,"  
"What?"  
"You said if I was good you'd read me this book, you promised me but you forgot!"  
"I never forget you, Chris. I'm sorry for making you wait so long, but I never forget you, I promise."

Charlie doesn't know why Chris is so upset about the whole promise thing, and part of him understands that kids just get grumpy when they're tired or sleepy. But Chris being sad makes him sad.  
"Don't be sad, I won't forget your promise. But you're tired and sleepy now, so how about we go home, take a nap, and then I'll read you this book when you feel better, sounds good?" Coyle talks to Chris sweetly.

Charlie quietly walks to the door. When he turns around, Coyle mouths 'sorry' at him as he gently strokes Chris' back. And Charlie mouths 'it's okay'.  
"Can you tell Zee that he's fine?" Coyle says in a small voice.  
"I'll tell him," Charlie smiles, then leaves them alone.

He wishes he could make Chris smile more often, but it's okay, you can't make everyone happy. He's just glad they have each other now, and he loves them both from the bottom of his heart.


	8. Age

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> not-fic Charlie/Matt

Sometimes younger brothers are taller than older ones,  
broader than their fathers.  
It's just the way things are.

Charlie is taller and broader than Matt,  
and he's almost four years younger than him.  
He never wants to hurt Matt,  
or he never wants to want to hurt him.

But sometimes Charlie looks at Matt and thinks,  
'I can hurt him if I want to,  
bite him if that's what I want.'

"Cheeks!  
What're you doing, come here," Matt calls.

Puppies are cute, doesn't mean they won't bite and kill other living things.  
(Matty, you never understand these things.)

So he just smiles and wags his tail as always,  
trails after him wherever he goes.


	9. we don't need a dog

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andre/Christian+puppy+Nicke

Andre knows Christian likes dogs.

"I want that smile on me."  
In the corner of the studio, Andre says to Nicke, watching Christian smile down at the puppies.  
"...You can use these dogs as bait, you know," Nicke implies, nodding toward the small creatures.

So, for his photo shoot, Andre carefully chooses the cutest one, which has dark brown fluffy fur. The puppy looks like some kind of poodle mix or something, but he's not sure.

"Djooos!!" Andre singsongs, holding the pup in his arms.  
Christian looks at him skeptically, hesitates for a moment, then resigns and comes closer to him.  
"...What?"  
Andre smiles triumphantly.  
"They gave me this cute little guy! Wanna say hi?"  
The puppy is getting bored of Andre already, and tries desperately to sniff Christian.  
"Hi..." Christian offers his hand.  
"Oh, he licked me... he's sooo cute..."  
You're sooo cute, Andre wants to say but he doesn't want Christian to stop smiling, so he keeps his mouth shut. Andre wonders what Christian will do if _he_ licks his lips, will he punch him in the stomach? Maybe.

"I wanna hold him," Christian makes grabby hands at him, so Andre hands the puppy over to him.  
Christian grabs the pup's front right paw lightly and raises it to greet him, like humans do.  
_"Hi, I'm Andre. Nice to meet you!"_ Christian says in a high pitched voice.  
"...Did you just name him Andre?" Andre asks, bursts out laughing.  
"Yeah, he looks like you, so fluffy."  
"Ookayy... Hi, _Andre,_ nice to meet you too. But just so you know, I'm cuter than you," Andre pretends to glare at the innocent puppy.  
Christian giggles, bumping his shoulder against Andre's. He's so giggly now, it's amazing.  
"Are you high or drunk or something?" Andre asks him quietly, nuzzling at Christian's neck.  
"No?" Christian says, a little bit confused.  
He knows Christian isn't much interested in any drugs or alcohol, but he can't help but ask. Dogs have a funny effect on Christian, he guesses.

"Djoos! Come here, your turn."  
Someone calls, and Christian walks away from him with the pup. So Andre returns to the couch in the corner of the studio, to wait until he's called.  
Nicke is still sitting in the same spot, escaping from 'puppy attack'. He looks at Andre pitifully, and says in Swedish.  
"You know, he's not exactly smiling _at you._ He just likes dogs."  
"Why do you say that? He likes me."  
And honestly, Andre doesn't care at this point. His smile is his smile.  
Andre switches back into English.  
"You're just grumpy 'cause you have to sit here watching small animals, and Alex isn't here."  
Nicke glares at him, but just then Christian walks back to them, still holding the fluffy puppy.  
"Nicke, look! Say hi to Andre, he looks like Andre, right?"  
Nicke smiles fondly, then scratches behind the pup's ear.  
"Did you have fun?" Nicke asks.  
"Yeah, so many puppies," Christian smiles sheepishly.

Once they're done with their photo shoots, of course they have to say good-bye to all these puppies.  
Christian looks so sad. Or, more accurately, he looks like he's feeling sad, and trying to keep his face neutral to hide his feelings, like Nicke.  
He shouldn't do that.  
Christian hero worships Nicke, and okay, who doesn't if you grew up watching him play in Sweden. Of course, Andre loves Nicke too.  
He just doesn't like when Christian tries to conceal his emotions.

"Don't look so sad, you have me," Andre bumps his shoulder against Christian's.  
"At least you're fluffy," Christian smiles a little, ruffles his hair softly.


	10. You're so pretty

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> not-fic Patrice/Brad←Tyler

'You're good looking, rich, and healthy.'  
'You can have whatever you want.'  
That's what they always told him.

Sure, being good-looking is useful most of the time.  
And Tyler doesn't have to worry about money or food.  
But he knows he can't have what he wants most.

Watching Brad smiling at Patrice is getting more and more painful these days.  
And the problem is...  
The problem is, Tyler loves Patrice.  
It would be easier if he could just hate and want to hurt Patrice.  
But Tyler loves Patrice no matter what.

So all he can do is think about the what-ifs.  
What if Tyler was born a few years earlier?  
What if he and Brad were on the same team, and Patrice wasn't?

"Don't worry, you can have whoever you want, you're so pretty."  
Brad laughs, when they're at a bar one night.  
"I know I'm pretty," Tyler smiles at him so brightly.  
And I know you love me,  
like a best friend, like a little brother.


	11. Andre

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andre: Three-year-old Andre/Christian

"Djoos! Play ball hockey with me!"

"Djooos! Nicke said dinner time! You sit with me, okay?"

"Djoooos! I wanna sleep in your room!"

"Djooos... Christian...?"

Three-year-old Andre _loves_ Christian, and toddles after him everywhere.  
But Christian never try to hold him or pick him up. He doesn't show much affection.

"Why don't you play with Andre, Christian?" Alex suggests.  
But Christian says, "I'm not good at kids."

"What if I drop him? What if I break him, he's so tiny..."  
"Kids are not that fragile, Christian. He just wants to play with you," Nicke says.  
Christian bites his lower lip, looks like he's not sure about it.

"Nicke..." Andre tugs Nicke's sleeve when he's doing dishes.  
"Christian doesn't like me?"  
"He loves you," Nicke says quietly. He wipes his hands on a towel, then crouches down in front of Andre.  
"He loves you, maybe a bit too much. So he gets scared sometimes."  
"Why?" Andre tilts his head, a confused look on his face.  
"He's afraid of hurting you, I guess."  
"'Cause he thinks I'm little? I'm not a baby!"  
Andre looks like he's not happy about it.  
"Yeah? So you need to tell him that."  
"Christian! I'm not a baby!"  
Andre runs into the living room.

Christian is watching recorded games when Andre tackles him around the knees.  
"Christian,"  
"Hmm...?"  
"I'm not little."  
"I didn't know that," Christian says flatly.  
"Djooos! I'm big! I'm strong, like Sasha!"  
Christian looks down at him properly, reaches his hand out to touch Andre's fluffy hair, but then withdraws it like he thinks better of it.  
"So you don't have to worry, okay?"  
Andre smiles really brightly, and then climbs into Christian's lap.  
"Where's my blankee...? I watch hockey with you."  
Andre squirms a lot in Christian's lap, so Christian has to hold him to keep him from falling.  
Christian finds the faded red blanket under the pillows on the couch.  
"My blankeee!!" Andre shrieks, snatching the blanket from Christian's hands.  
"Hey, _I_ found your blankee, remember?" Christian tickles him a little, Andre giggles happily, so he tickles him a little more.  
"Stop! Djooos! I give up!"  
"Really? I thought you were tough," Christian laughs brightly.

Andre's blanket is big enough for them to snuggle under comfortably as they watch the Caps beating the Penguins.


	12. Homesick

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Three-year-olds: Christian, Danton

Christian and Danton are calm even when they're three-year-olds, and they're good friends. But when they get lonely, they quietly start panicking and fight over small things.  
"My turn!" Danton snatches the mini goalie stick away from Christian's hands.  
"You said that last time! Sean will never love you back if you're so mean," Christian says.  
"Sean loves me! Do you know why you're here?" Danton tilts his head.  
"'Cause Nicke already forgot you. He doesn't want you anymore!"  
Christian bites his lips to keep himself from crying, then hits Danton's round cheek with his tiny hand. Danton blinks once, twice, then starts crying.

"What are you boys doing?!"  
Backes rushes into the living room.  
"He hit me!" Danton sobs and points at Christian.  
"Danny said Nicke doesn't want me!" Christian clutches Backes' sleeve.  
Backes looks down at the babies, then sighs.  
"In that case, I have to tell Nicke and Sean that you're being bad."  
He gives them his 'I'm disappointed in you' look.  
"I'm gonna call them," Backes gets to his feet to grab his laptop.  
"No! Wait!" Christian exclaims.  
"I haven't changed my shirt yet!" Danton looks down at his tiny white t-shirt with ketchup stains.  
"Sean's gonna think that I'm not cool!"  
"We haven't picked up the toys yet! Nicke's gonna think that I'm lazy!"  
Christian looks upset but Backes doesn't wait for them, just sets up his laptop on the coffee table for the video call. The boys give up on cleaning up their mess, stare into the webcam curiously.

"Hello?" Slightly cracked Nicke's voice comes through the speaker.  
"Hi guys! How are you doing?" Sean greets cheerfully.  
The video chat windows are a bit small, but the boys get excited to see their former teammates.

"What happened to your cheek?"  
Sean looks at Danton's slightly pink cheek and asks about it curiously. Christian flinches beside Backes.  
"...I hit him," he says in a really small voice.  
"What?" Nicke says.  
"Oh," Sean rounds his eyes. Sean's never thought of Christian as the violent type of person, even when he's an adult.  
"You shouldn't do that," Nicke says firmly.  
"I'm sorry..."  
"Say sorry to Dan, not to me, Christian."  
"I'm sorry I hit you, Danny..."  
Now Christian looks like a frightened puppy. Nicke sighs heavily.  
"...Why did you do that? You never hit Andre, Dan is like Andre, you know... you should protect them. They're like your little brothers."  
Christian bites his lips, a tearful look on his face.  
"...But I don't want little brothers! I want _you!!_"  
Christian finally starts crying. Backes holds him in his lap, gently strokes his back.  
"Shh... Being the older one isn't fun, huh?"  
Backes talks to him softly but Christian doesn't stop crying.  
Danton looks up at Christian, blinks few times. He's never seen Christian crying. Danton thinks Christian is crying because of him, but has no idea what to do. So he tells them honestly.  
"I said mean things."  
"Hey, you shouldn't be mean to your teammate, Danny," Sean says quietly.

"Why baby crying?"  
Alex has been doing... moving furniture or something in the background this whole time, but pipes up from behind Nicke.  
"I hit Danny... Nicke mad at me..." Christian sobs.  
"Oh, but you won't do that again, yes?"  
Christian nods frantically.  
"Okay, now hug! Then you'll be just fine."  
Christian reaches his hands toward Danton, then hugs him.  
"I'm sorry I hit you,"  
Danton clings to Christian, and says "I'm sorry I said mean things..."  
The boys are still sniffling a little, so they wait for the babies to calm down a bit, then say good byes.

A few minutes later, their captain and a few guys knock on Backes' door, carrying lots of bags of McDonalds.  
"David told me someone was crying," Getzlaf says to the boys, then looks at Backes.  
"Are they okay? Did someone get hurt?"  
"Nah... I think they're just homesick."  
"Poor kids..." Getzlaf mutters.

"I didn't cry," Christian clutches the denim of Getzlaf's jeans and looks up at his captain.  
"Yeah! We didn't cry! We're not babies!" Danton joins Christian.  
"Really...?"  
Getzlaf hoists Christian into the air, tickles him. So Christian starts giggling.  
"I cried a bit, but Danny cried too!"  
"I want up, up, too!"  
Danton clings to Getzlaf's legs, so he tosses him in the air few times then gently puts him down on the floor.  
"Do you want Happy Meals?"  
The boys run into the kitchen, shrieking with delight.

Their teammates feed them, build the blanket fort and watch _Disney Fantasia 2000,_ the one about Noah's Ark.  
After their captain and teammates go back to their respective homes, Backes throws these colorful rubber duckies in the tub, and gives the boys a bath.

When he tucks them into bed at night, they don't fuss much. It was a tough day for three of them. Backes sets the stuffed duck between the two of them, and makes sure they're covered with the blankets one more time.  
"...You know, there's nothing wrong with missing your former teammates. You can tell any of us if you get lonely, both of you."  
"But I love my team," Christian sniffles.  
"I know, but it's okay to be sad sometimes. I still miss the Bruins too."  
"Do you...?" Danton peeks out from under the blanket.  
"Of course, I do. And... do you know I was once a Blues? I was the captain, but I had to say goodbye to the Blues, so I missed them when I was in Boston. But the Bruins became my new family and... You don't have to worry, you can still talk to them, and you'll find a new family. The journey keeps continuing..."  
Danton falls asleep before Christian does, clutching Christian's pj shirt. Backes waits until Christian is asleep too, kisses each of their foreheads, and then turns the light off before leaving.


	13. Superstar - Tokyo Incidents

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> not-fic, lyrics translation Nicke/Christian

"Your future doesn't care about you,  
you have to create it on your own."  
I know you'd probably say something like that  
but sometimes I get upset in the mornings,  
don't know what to say.  
I still remember your stubborn eyes but  
I won't be happy even if I see you.  
If I'm still weak like this  
I don't wanna see you yet.

"The answer is infinite,  
you have to build it on your own."  
The ground is protected with the dying leaves as usual.  
I walk around kicking the ground, searching for the voice.  
You made your decision to stand in solitude.  
Every time I remember that,  
I fight back my tears and try to stay strong.  
I'm nothing like you, but still...

Tomorrow, I want to be strong enough  
to face the flame burning inside of you.  
When I see you, I want to be proud of who I am.  
I watch you play on TV  
you're my Superstar.


	14. Let's get lost together

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jaro/Johnny

"Let's get lost together," Jaro says, holding out his hand to him. There are miles and miles of trees in front of them.  
Sidney always says, "Don't follow strangers, Johnny. There are so many bad guys out there." Well, Jaro is kind of a stranger to him, but Johnny doesn't think Jaro Halak is some kind of serial killer or kidnapper or rapist or something, so it's okay to follow him, maybe?  
"Sure," Johnny takes his hand, why not? He's never been to the forest in Slovakia.  
"You're naive," Jaro smiles softly.  
"I'm not," Johnny says firmly, but it sounds like a petulant child.  
"What if I'm a murderer or something?"  
"I don't think sooo... You're too humble to be Ted Bundy."  
"Still you shouldn't go into the woods with a man you barely know."  
Maybe he's right, but Jaro's hand is so warm and Johnny follows him wherever he goes. The water is clear, the leaves are beautiful orange.  
"Oh," Jaro stops walking, rummaging through his pocket.  
"I forgot my map in the cabin."  
"...You're kidding, right?"  
"Don't worry, we can do camping."  
"We don't have any tents, or sleeping bags, or food, or... anything for camping! I don't want to be eaten by hungry bears."  
"We'll be fine," Jaro is always calm like a lake in the woods. Maybe Johnny shouldn't have followed this man.  
"...Chara," Johnny suggests. "He's still around this area, right? We can call him and ask him to come get us."  
"I don't want to ask him for any help," Jaro says, and this time he's the one who sounds like a stubborn kid.  
"Why do you hate him? He's your captain," Johnny asks innocently.  
"I don't _hate_ him, it's just... it's complicated. You don't understand," Jaro says frustratedly.  
"Then you can talk to me about it, you know, we have plenty of time," Johnny squeezes Jaro's hand. The air gets chilly, and Jaro still doesn't know how to have a healthy relationship with his captain. But it'll be okay. Johnny kisses his cheek, a bird flies above them.


	15. Nicke

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Andre/Christian

Andre bites Christian's ear from behind, Christian cries out in pain or pleasure.  
"You're loud," Andre smiles.  
"Nicke's gonna hear you, is that what you want?"  
Christian shakes his head, bites his own hand. Andre removes Christian's hand, shoves a few fingers to open his mouth.  
"What are you afraid of? I'm sure he knows you're not a virgin," Andre laughs. There's a hint of sneer in his voice. Mentioning Nicke during sex always has a funny effect on Christian.  
"Nicke would never touch you like this, he just couldn't. 'Cause he knew how you had smiled at him when you were 10 years old."  
A tear rolls down Christian's cheek.  
"Don't cry, I like when you smile," Andre licks his tear away like a dog.  
_"Fuck you,"_ Christian bites out.  
"I love you, Chris," Andre strokes his hair, kisses the back of his neck. The touch is so gentle. "Papa loves you too."


	16. the little ones

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Danton+Backes+Christian

David's body is covered with bruises. He's exhausted, and just wants to go to bed.  
He's dozing off when someone snuggles under his blanket. David groans.  
"...Christian, I'm not Nicke. Go back to your bed."  
"My bed is cold," Christian complains.  
The other side of the bed sinks down and David sighs deeply.  
"Danny... you don't have to copy everything he did. Go back to your room."  
But Danton just ignores him, snuggling deeper into the blanket.  
"How did you get in...?" David asks, yawning.  
"Chris's good at picking locks," Danton says, giggling.  
"...What?"  
"Ignore him, he's just kidding. We have your room key," Christian smiles.  
"Why...?" Backes doesn't even bother getting the answers from them at this point. Some of their teammates must have thought it was a good idea to let them have his room key. "Just let Dadkes take care of his kids!" or something.

Backes has his own kids and dogs, so he's used to being invaded his personal space. And of course the hotel bed is big enough for a hockey player. But it's not made for _three_ hockey players to sleep in. Danton and Christian may be skinny, but they're still over six feet tall, professional athletes. And now Backes is stuck between them.

They both keep quiet for a while. But just when David starts dozing off again, Danton bolts upright in bed, whisper-yelling at Christian.  
"...Don't steal the blanket!"  
"_You_ stop stealing," Christian retorts.  
"...Guys, stop fighting... I need my sleep..." David groans again.  
"I'm not sleepy," Danton whines.  
"He's a baby," Christian laughs.  
"Christian," Backes uses a scolding tone.  
"Just close your eyes," he tugs them closer, hoping they fall asleep soon. After a few minutes, soft snores fill the room.


	17. if you love them

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Patrice+Tuukka (+Jaro+Brad)

"Jaro!"  
Tuukka spots and calls out to him in the hallway, and Jaro waves a little at them from a distance.  
"I'm just gonna... go hug him, real quick," Tuukka says to Patrice, then starts walking away but Patrice immediately grabs him by the scruff of the neck.  
"Stay away from him," Patrice says sharply.  
"I just wanna say 'Hi' to my partner," Tuukka glares at Patrice.  
"You can say hi from here, or over the video call or whatever."  
"I need to hug him!"  
"You're not allowed to be near him!"  
"Why?" At this point, Tuukka is pissed off, but Patrice is immune to Tuukka's tantrums. Patrice breathes once, deeply.  
"You know why. We can't lose both of you. If you love him, and care about him, stay away from him. Okay?"  
"...You can't tell me what to do," Tuukka mutters in a small voice.  
"Of course I can, I'm your Captain now. You should listen to your Captain."  
"Or what?" Tuukka challenges.  
"Or I'll tell Zee you don't listen to me."  
"I hate you! Everyone says you're _nice,_ but you _are not._"  
"Nah, I know you love me," Patrice smiles softly, then turns around and shouts.  
"Brad! Stop hugging Pasta! What did I tell you about _social distancing?_"  
"Aye, aye, Captain," Brad steps away from Pasta, giggling.  
"Stop teasing me..." Patrice sighs heavily. "I'd make a great kindergarten teacher after I retired from the NHL," Patrice says.  
"Because you would do anything to protect your cubs," Tuukka smiles a little.  
"Yeah, I'm trying to..." Patrice waves back at Jaro, a soft smile on his lips.


	18. They're mine!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jaro/Tuukka/Dobby+Patrice

Jaro and Dobby are chatting softly. They talk about hockey, of course, and a few other things. But they mostly talk about Tuukka.

Tuukka glares at them talking together. Patrice looks at him curiously and asks.  
"Are you jealous of Jaro or are you jealous of Dobby?"  
Tuukka growls lowly in his throat, and then strides toward them.  
"What are you guys talking about without me?" he demands.  
"Oh, hi Tuuks. We're just talking about you," Dobby smiles at Tuukka warmly.  
"...Bad things?" Tuukka asks worriedly.  
"Of course not, just about how amazing you are," Jaro says gently.  
Tuukka grabs onto one of their arms in each arm, grinning contentedly and possessively between them.  
Patrice rolls his eyes at that. He thinks maybe he should teach Tuukka about sharing, but he lets him get away with it for now.


End file.
